Roger refused Sonia’s goodwill.
To ensure safety in the Otherworld, Sonia had exerted all his strength. He was badly injured, coughing up blood as he walked to Amanda’s side.
"Do me a favor, let’s take off her clothes together."
Roger widened his eyes.
"What do you mean by this?" He hurriedly shook his head. "Let’s focus on the important things first. Some things can wait until we get back."
"What I’m doing is the important thing." Sonia shot Roger a sideways glance. Seeing Roger not stepping forward to help, he simply snapped his fingers. Black smoke swept over, devouring every piece of clothing Amanda was wearing.
"I’ve been too severely injured. The brief moment of communication earlier gave me only basic information about Another World, as well as some intel on that woman."
"Although I don’t fully understand why she abandoned her own body, she must have employed certain techniques on the other side."
"Thinking it over, it must be either Bloodline Prohibition or directly engraving some kind of Ritual Array on the physical body."
"Only this way could Amanda’s soul be bound to another body."
"Luckily, you discovered it in time. Otherwise, once the compatibility between the body and soul reaches a certain degree, it would be impossible to restore them to their original positions through simple methods."
Roger understood Sonia’s point—it seemed she had a solution.
"If the Prohibition is solely acting on the body, then it’s easier to handle. You’ll need that girl you found to break the seal, and then, through the Spirit Return Array, as space is shattered, their souls can be swapped, restoring everything to its proper order."
"But if the ritual doesn’t target the body directly and instead uses other methods, things could get complicated. You’ll have to bring that girl along with her body."
"No, not difficult, but she’s very likely to die."
"The previous exchange relied on the unique rituals of the Dragonborn, with their Bloodline Power protecting their souls during the instantaneous conversion. The process was swift and safe."
"But if it’s a physical crossing through a world barrier..."
Sonia shook his head.
"Her soul’s strength is far too weak."
As he spoke, his hands didn’t stop moving. The blood he coughed up seeped into Amanda’s body under the guidance of a mysterious power.
"The ritual has already been partially completed. The next step is to locate that girl, but there’s one thing I need to remind you."
"No matter which method we choose, when we return, if you want to bring back that girl’s soul, you need to be mentally prepared. It will cause significant Energy fluctuations."
"And the activation of the ritual will require some time, which will inevitably attract the attention of transcendent entities from Another World. If we’re unlucky and there’s a powerful Transcendent nearby..."
Sonia stopped talking.
The outcome was self-evident.
"Erode. That world is called Erode."
"Its Energy Level surpasses ours by a considerable margin, but its civilization level is relatively primitive. That’s not good news."
"In any case, you must be extra cautious."
Sonia gave a solemn reminder.
"When we arrive in Another World, I will separate from you. I don’t have much time, so I must make use of it."
She paused her actions and conveyed the information she had just obtained to Roger.
"How can one extend life expectancy?"
"I might be able to lend a small hand," Roger said.
"On the other side, the first thing I’ll do is find a place to recover my strength, and then seek some... artifacts that can increase life limits."
"Is it really that simple?"
"There’s no other way. I can’t alter the rules now; I can only obscure them, temporarily stepping outside of their confines."
"Meaning, within the confines of the rules, you cease to be a living being, becoming equivalent to a lifeless object like stone or dirt?"
Sonia nodded. "Exactly. This approach has significant drawbacks. During this time, I cannot afford to be injured—or engage in battle—until I’ve adequately prepared and opened the next phase of my journey."
"An artifact. That sounds simple."
"You could always try negotiation..."
"It’s not that easy; you’ll understand. If you encounter one, keep it for yourself."
Sonia glanced at Roger.
"After all, this may very well be your last journey to the Otherworld."
Clearly, Sonia didn’t have high hopes for Roger.
Sonia’s blood had now seeped into Amanda’s skin. Roger hesitated before dressing the girl with a fresh set of clothes.
"We now have a vague position of Another World. What we need to do next is find a relatively safe path."
Roger nodded. With a flip of his wrist, the Eye of Truth appeared out of nowhere.
"Bring your weapons. As for other items, bringing them won’t be of much use."
Only then did Roger recall that they were heading to Another World, where the functionalities of the Hunter’s Cabin...
A wisp of black smoke flickered. The Black Moon materialized behind Roger, followed by a strand of consciousness infiltrating the Eye of Truth.
In that instant, the entire world underwent a massive transformation.
Focusing intently, following Sonia’s guidance, Roger suddenly felt his vision penetrate countless barriers, as if he were surrounded by a dense Mist.
"Do you see it? The Mist in front of you."
"That’s the Mist Barrier—it may look thin, but it’s infinitely treacherous. It acts as a barrier to different worlds."
"Having just obtained the Eye of Truth, your power hasn’t reached the Fifth Tier yet. Your visibility should be very limited. Based on my instructions, you need to first identify the approximate direction..."